Brave New World
by Sevejar Locke
Summary: A twist in reality itself, and our hero finds himself warped in a videogame, sitting opposite to an avatar of his gaming console, who schedules him to become a SeeD. A twisted version of Final Fantasy 8, including the insertion of a new character. On hold
1. Uploading

**Brave New World**

_Disclaimer: I do not own Sony, Squaresoft, Iron Maiden, or any other known franchise that might appear in my story. I will make no money from the posting of this fic. I do own a Playstation 2 and a copy of Final Fantasy VIII, though._

_A word to ALL readers. This story was influenced by Triggerhappy777's "I wanna go home!". I e-mailed Triggerhappy and specifically asked permission to post a story with similar premise, and image, and was granted the ability to do so. Certain things will be similar in our stories but I am making a concentrated effort to make my story different from "IWGH!". _

_That said,sit back, read, enjoy, and review the story._

_

* * *

_

**Dying swans twisted wings, beauty not needed here  
Lost my love, lost my life, in this Garden of fear  
I have seen many things, in a lifetime alone  
Mother love is no more, bring this savage back home**

**Iron Maiden – Brave New World**

The whipping air and the dark, ominous, rain promising clouds portrayed Vincent Marko's mood as he walked his way home from school. Above, the clouds started booming. The eighteen year old student felt life was unfair, and perhaps, just perhaps, he could be right.

Vincent Marko had a nice life so far, with most things served to him in a silver platter, a healthy social life, and a adoring family. So, when his girlfriend, Sarah, punched him in the face, instead of saying the casual 'we're done' and giving him the cold back, or even the finger for that matter, it actually hurt. Well, his face was in pain more than his pride - that girl packed quite a left hook -, but that didn't change things. Worst part, it wasn't his fault that the girl was outraged with something. Still, she left after punching him, not explaining herself, leaving him alone outside the school, where he layed on the ground, too dizzy to move.

Of course, taking a 'nap' wasn't too helpful, since the 'hollier-than-thou' Mr. Anderson wasn't approving of him being late in his class. Vincent had practically wished for the girl to have left him with a mark - a swollen eye could do the trick right then -, so that he could have walked out of the class to go to the infirmary instead of the headmaster's office. The headmaster wasn't approving of the whole situation as well. His punishment was.. righteous. Only two hours of detention for the next two days. When Vincent told him to go fuck himself - his patience was long past it's limit, and he always had a problem with authority -, the headmaster decided to give him four extra hours, to a maximum of six for the rest of the week. He was not allowed to go to the classes of the day, nor leave the school compound, thus not being able to write a test, occuring to immediate failure. Vincent decided to comply. He couldn't afford more punishment anyway, and didn't want for that stupid idiot to call his house.

So, the conclusion was this. It wasn't his day. As if his troubles weren't enough, the 'Bully' as he was called by the rest of the students, decided to approach Vincent at the lunchtime. 'Bully'. Such a fitting name, really. The kid was stout and tall, with a long ponytail flailing around, similar to a mane. His face did remind of a bull, and that was due to the stupid smile and creased eyes. In a sense, all that was missing were the horns. Bully, also known as Ralph Heckerson, did feature even the ring in the nose.

Vincent, on his own accord, was, as the girls described him, 'neither heavenly nor bad'. He thought that was a good thing when he first heard it, but shrugged it off. His skin was fair, he was rather well-built and tall, heighting 6'2, his shoulders wide and strong, those of someone who trained usually, and his limbs were quite long. Vincent wore grey sneakers, buggy black jeans, and a blue shirt. He had short unruly black hair, and his eyes were that of really bright azure. His chin was decorated with a well trimmed goatee.

Vincent turned to meet Bully, who was casually smirking, as if he owned the world. In truth, that expression gave him the look of someone who had crap under his nose, but no one dared to tell him that. "What do you want, Bull?" He asked. He was in no mood to beat around the bush with this guy, not with everything happening to him that same day.

"Got a smoke, Marko?" Bully asked, his brown eyes locking into blue ones.

"I might." Vincent responded. "What's it to you?"

"Well, could you spare a few cigares for ol'Bull, eh?" It wasn't really a question, but rather a command.

Vincent decided to fuck around. After all, his ego had already been hurt once today, there was no way for a fool like Bull to push him around. "Nah, sorry, Bull, not to many in the pack, you know?" He said, an arrogant smirk creeping up to his lips, similar to the one Bull wore. The basic difference was that Vincent's face did not portray stupidity, but cockiness. Unfortunately, those two were synonims.

Bull's hand reached for Vincent's collar. "I said give me a smoke, you piece of shit!" Vincent's smirk only widened to a full smile as his knee went sky high, connecting to the teen's groin. Bull fell to the ground immidiately, his 'pride' crushed behind Vincent's furious kick.

Vincent decided to taunt him. "How's that, Bull? Got yourself a fire, and where's fire there's smo-" He had underestimated Bull. He had gotten up imediately, screaming bloody murder and death, and punching Vincent straight to the chest, not powerful enough to cause damage, but with enough force to throw the two men on the ground, Bull on the top, his hands forming a tight grip around Vincent's neck.

"DIE!" He screamed, his saliva dripping on Vincent, who had enough. "You first", he managed to taunt between a moan and a wheeze, and punched Bull in the eye. As the other man lost balance and rose from on top of him, screaming in pain, Vincent's other hand moved to strike Bull's neck with a well aimed shot. Vincent was no push-over, having attended Kick Boxing classes since he was ten. The moment he struck the hulk's windpipe, Bull started coughing and wheezing. Never losing a beat, Vincent tossed one more punch, straight to Bull's face, making the larger student lose conciousness and fall to the floor. As Vincent got up from the ground, rubbing his rather sore neck, chaos around him ensued, the people who had watched the fight finally realising that Bull had fallen.

Amongst the crowd rushing in to take a better view, the Headmaster appeared, cold fury in the elder man's blue eyes. "What is going on here?" Asked the elder man, glancing upon the fallen form of Bull, and then at Vincent. "You again, huh?" The Headmaster actually smiled, and, the sheer cruelty behind his smile was enough to bring an icy chill up Vincent's spine..

* * *

So, after eight long hours of being locked in a classroom, Vincent finally got out of the school compound, and decided to head home. That was when the clouds above reached their zenith of holding back the moist, and purred down the water they were holding. Vincent glanced up, his tired form aching just from the tiny droplets falling on him. "Gee", he said to noone in particular up there, "Thanks."

He walked home, soaking wet, musing on the events of the day. How could all these be solved? He asked himself. He could always give Sarah a call, and try to fix things – even though he wasn't sure on what he had done wrong, to be honest. He'd have to attend in the detention, sure, but that wasn't too bad. And, finally, Bull. The kid had just lost conciousness, but that wasn't the bad part. He would gather company. _Hell_, Vincent mused, _I'm lucky that sonuvah bitch hasn't been stalking me already._ Clucking his tongue, he reached his house front door. He would finally get to have a hot meal, and maybe a beverage, and sleep.. All to served to him by his mother, while she would ask him how his day was, and he would lie, saying that it was perfect.

Beautiful.

Or was it? His key met the keyhole, and he twisted, expecting the door to open. It didn't with the first try, so he turned it again. Once more, it didn't open. "No.." He whispered, and unlocked the door. As his 'fantasy' collapsed to nothingness, Vincent entered his home, finding it devoid of life. Dropping his bag on the ground, he went straight to the kitchen where a paper not was hanging from the fridge's door.

_Dear Vincent_, It read, _I am sorry, sweetheart, but you'll have to take care of yourself by yourself, since I got a call from work. There's no actual food in the fridge, but I'm sure you'll manage. I don't know what time I'll be back. Sorry! Mom._

Vincent banged the innocent's fridge door. "Damn it! Face it, Marko, it's not your lucky day." Vincent moved to the phone, musing over things. His parents had divorced four years ago, and he hadn't heard from his father ever since. His mather was depressed for a while, but she survived it, along with Vincent. She was strong enough to get a job, and keep it.

Vincent smiled. That's what he loved about his mother. Her confidence. He dialed a number on the phone, ordered a pizza, and grabbed his bag from the ground. He went to his room, but, on the way there, he noticed his Playstation 2, practically beaming at him from it's place in front of the television. "Screw you, homework", he yelled, and dropped the bag on the floor. He wasn't even going to _bother_ with homework until he had forgot all about his sour mood. Vincent glanced upon his vast collection of videogames. He had to choose between espionage, fighting, shooting, an adventure, and, of course, RPGs.

He loved those. Vastworlds, swords, sorcery, eternal rivals, epic stories, in a sense, everything one needed to get away from reality. Smiling, he reached for one of his favourites.

Final Fantasy VIII.

He downright worshiped that game. It's characters, it's world, the history behind it, the fighting system, everything. Seifer's psychotic grin, Squall's indifferent "whatever", Edea's arrogant smirk, Rinoa's warm smile, and the list could go on and on until he forgot what he was talking about. So, taking a warm smile of his own, Vincent placed the 1st CD inside the PS2's reader, clutched the controller, and layed on the couch, ready to join Squall and the rest of the gang in their adventure.

He didn't feel like finishing the game, however. His current save point was right outside the final battle, so he opted to start a new game instead. His mood was getting already better, the second he heard the opening theme, Liberi Fatali.

_"Fithos.. lusec.. wecos.. vinosec.."_ Came the chorus from the speakers, and Vincent readied himself for the opening scene in the beach, which advanced to the flower field where Rinoa and Squall promised that he would be waiting.. For what? He would be waiting, so, if she came there, Rinoa would find him. However, that scene never came. As a casual observer would comment; "Talk about a mood-killer".

And, indeed, Vincent got up from the couch, shouting. "Come on, don't do this to me!"

He walked to the PS2 and ducked to open the reader. Most probably, it was the CD's fault. Yeah, that was it, the CD was dirty or something, and it wouldn't play. Yeah, that's right. The music boomed from the television's speakers, and Vincent glanced up.. For his jaw to form a perfect 'O'.

His sight detected that something was not quite right. The beach was now in front of him, but it was way too vivid. Too real for his tastes. And what was wrong with the wind? Had he left a window open? Or could it be..

He glanced around him and at his surroundings, to let a little yelp and fall on the floor. But, instead of landing on his cozy carpet, he fell on a beach's sandy ground.. "No way!" He yelled. He looked around, in a frenzy, not believing what was happening.

How could this be? He was home, wasn't he? He felt around for his carpet. "I tripped and fell, that's it, I tripped and fell, and hit my head or something." His hand reached to something other than sand, and he allowed himself to open his eyes and look. What he saw startled him more than the sand.

There was a sword laying next to him. It was, beautiful, to say the least, a real work of art. It was a claymore, Vincent mused after he regained his composure, and judging on the sword's length. It's handle was one and half feet long, and it's blade was hidden in a black sheath. All in all, the massive sword was five feet long, and made of fine steel. Vincent had done his homework on swords before, more as a hobby rather than an actual activity, and found it difficult to believe that such a mastercraft item would be left in the middle of a beach. His eyes caught sight of letters on the sword's sheath. He neared his head to read, and, as he did, he heard a voice behind him. "Harbinger."

Not sooner that the voice had spoke this simple word, with reflexes he did not knew he had, Vincent had unsheathed the claymore, and readied himself for the onslaught. He did not expect the speaker to be a five year old blonde girl her hair caught in a pig tail, wearing a skirt and a blouse (which reminded Vincent of a SeeD uniform for some unknown reason). "Who are _you_?" He asked, his patience and sour mood returning.

"Chill," responded the girl, "I am not here to hurt you, big guy. I am here to give you the tutorial, and explain things, and then I'll be gone."

Vincent was dumbfounded to say the least. "Huh?" He croaked, his breath caught in his chest. _What the hell is going on?_ He thought.

"Ok, here's the deal, Vincent. I am your PS2's spirit. Nice to meet you." Vincent resisted the urge to nod in acceptance. "Tchk. At least say hi, will you?" The girl frowned. "For some magical reason, which I cannot reveal yet, I have brought you in this place!" She winked to him as she spoke, and Vincent found himself lowering his sword, and waiting for answers.

"This place is Balamb. That thing over there is Balamb Garden." She pointed at the distance, and Vincent turned to what his.. PS2 had dubbed as the Balamb Garden. Balamb Garden was an immense building, towering over three hundred feet into the air. It was somewhat conical, with a rounded tip. The central structure of Balamb Garden loomed over the whole Garden grounds, painted white for the most part but with many decorative touches all around the main building. Directly above the central building, rotating in the air, was an immense glowing ring that slowly spun around the entire structure. Vincent was awed by the immense ring overhead. "How the hell does it do that?" He asked, bewildered.

The girl giggled. "What are you talking about?"

"How does the ring stay airborn?" He asked again, and he found his voice devoid of feeling and dull.

"I am five years old, silly! I am clueless about physics!" She responded playfully, tossing a wink and a pink tongue at him. "Anyway" She continued, "Pay attention." She stood straight, as if giving a lecture. "This is your reality now, Vincent. Everything you are about to experience is real. So, you should take it seriously. A Fire spell could deal you a lot of damage, even kill you, if you are not junctioned. A bullet to your head can also kill you, so you should be careful with guns as well."

Vincent stared at his sword while the girl spoke. "Finally, you have been imported here, but I sort of 'cheated' with the powers that did that. I gave you SeeD knowledge, sword training, basically combat stuff, as some information about the local customs. Saying 'Hyne' instead of 'God' will come really easily to you now." The girl (or it, considering she was a machine, as she stated) smiled at him.

"But, I also had to 'lock' parts of your brain. You might know the story, or at least think you do, but, you can't speak to someone about it."

Vincent stared at her, startled. "What?" The girl asked, faking shock. "You really are in a videogame, Vince. But there is no save/load, so be careful."

Vincent shook his head. "And what the hell am I supposed to do?" He yelled, his anger fuming once more.

"Dunno. Right now, you're a SeeD cadet. Go and become a SeeD." She shrugged. "Well, I think that's most about it. If I need to tell you something more, I'll give you a call, ok?" She smiled to him once more, and faded to nothingness.

Vincent stood there for a second, before shrugging as well. "This is either going to be the greatest thing that has happened to me, or life is about to shovel a huge load of shit on me." He said, and prepared to take his leave through the plains and towards the Balamb Garden.


	2. Going with the flow

It was a rather nice walk to the Balamb Garden. Easy, it was not, since more than five insect's Vincent's imported knowledge recognised as Bite Bugs had attacked him. He easily chopped them down, getting the grasp of the sword's use. The 'memories' of Kenjutsu, or swordmanship came to his mind's flow, and he used those to come victorious over his battles. Vincent even went as far as parrying the Bug's 'love' bites, and counterattacking rather brutally, cleaving the bugs in half.

Smirking cockily now, he walked to the Garden's entrance. _I can definetely enjoy this.._ He thought. His PS2 had told him that it wasn't going to be the same thing as the video game, and that he should be keeping an eye out, but, frankly, Vincent didn't give a damn. If he could take down a rather nasty monster unjunctioned, he couldn't wait to see what he could do with a GF on.

He walked the gate, down a short staircase, past a beautiful collection of pools, waterfalls and shrubbery, the wide concrete avenue leading out from the front entrance and walked to the attendant of the front entrance. Vincent couldn't help it but think that the place was too similar to a supermarket, with the bars glowing red and blue, indicating whether you should push or pull.

The old man behind the plexiglass nodded in acknowledgement, and the teen nodded back before pushing a blue bar and walking his merry way. There, he stood gaping the second he walked down a long lane and into the open, circular ground that was the interior of the Balamb Garden.

The first level was just open space, with many walkways arranged like the spokes of a wheel that lead to the Facilities, like the Infirmary or the Cafeteria. In the center of the first level were the elevators connecting to the classrooms.. Vincent counted four elevators.

_Hmm.._ He mused silently, _in the game you only see and use one.. Does that mean that the Garden has changed? Or that due to the different point of view I get to see them? Either way, it's not that bad.. Heh, I think I should check out the facilities at some point.._

Separating the central platform from the walkway was a raised pool that surrounded the elevator platform. Ornate and beautiful fish statues acted as fountains for the pool. The water filtered down underneath the walkway to spill down into an outer pool that ran underneath the connecting walkways to the various facilities. Throughout the expansive room were numerous plants and shrubs. Combined with the flowing water and the general student life, these gave Balamb Garden a vibrant, lush atmosphere, that of an indoor paradise.

Two way too beautiful to be real girls walked past Vincent, and smiled chalantly. "Good morning", they chirped in unison, and Vincent returned the smile and wish.

_Please, if this is a dream, don't let me wake up yet. _

Suddenly, his stomach decided to intervene, and growled. _Hmph. I get ultimate sword moves, but can't be given a slice of pizza, it seems. _He decided to walk to the cafeteria, if not to eat, at least meet someone. The second he walked down the corridor, however, and was about to enter the room, a cold hand with rather long fingers fell on his shoulder.

Turning, rather startled, he came face to face with what he recognised as a faculty member.

He wore a heavy red robe, hood, and yellow hat that covered his whole face. "You're Vincent Marko," the Faculty deadpanned, to which Vincent nodded. "Don't you have class at this time?" He asked, and Vincent could feel accusasion radiating off the short man and on him.

Vincent nodded once again, getting a rather unpleasant memory of his headmaster smiling at him, knowing that Vincent was a bug in front of his omnipotence.

"Yeah, I do." He said, defiance brought to his voice.

The faculty member tensed, and the teen thought the man would burst off in a berserking rage, but soon enough the robe-clad person relaxed. "If that's the case, make haste to your class!" He hissed, and spinned to take his leave.

"Asshole," Vincent muttered, but decided to comply to the orders he had been given. This could affect many things, like his SeeD rank or chance to actually become a SeeD. He wouldn't afford that, and, plus, that guy could stand in front of him again later in the 'game'. He'd get vengeance then, he guessed, and ran to his classroom.

Taking the elevator to a balcony, and then crossing an ornate bridge connecting the classrooms to the central elevator shafts. The classrooms were positioned on the second level, in a ring around the central elevators. To reach the elevators, one had to cross the bridges connecting the shafts with the classroom hallways. There were a good hundred feet between the first and second levels, so one on the bridge was offered a spectacular sweeping view of the interior of Balamb Garden.

A view which Vincent decided not to enjoy. _More Faculty could be lurking, _he thought, _and these won't be as polite as the one before._

He reached class 6-D, which his mind recognised as his own, and walked to knock, when he found that the doors were automated. So, he stood there startled, hand raised to knock, and the students in the class stood there, watching to the reason of the lesson's disruption - him.

The imported SeeD cadet brought his raised hand behind his head, scratching it in awkwardness, when he heard someone clearing her throat. That someone was Quistis Trepe, as he recognised.

She was a beautiful young woman, about the same age and height as Vincent, clad in a black uniform with gold trimming, a knee-length skirt, and boots. She was blonde, with long hair that hung down either side of her face in front, and done up in the back so it doubled back on itself before coming down. She wore glasses over her large, blue eyes, which rolled as she looked at the teen at the classroom's door.

"May I ask why you decided to honor us with your presence in the class's last minute, mr. Marko?" She asked, her voice serious, and her posture stern.

Vincent brought his hand down and shrugged. "There was a hot-dog two-for-one offer at the cafeteria," he said, brushing the matter already off, and deciding to joke around a bit.

Chuckling echoed through the classroom, and Quistis brought order by clapping her elegant hands twice. "Alright," she said, "class is over." As the students gathered their belongings, she locked her eyes with a student to the back, and spoke again. "And Seifer! Do NOT injure your partner while training. Be careful from now on."

The person in mentioning only banged his hand on his desk, and got off in order to leave. Quistis then spoke more softly. "Squall, Vincent, I need to talk to you." As Vincent moved to comply, Seifer got in his way. For a long second that seemed like an eternity to him, the blonde scarred teen, dressed in a grey trenchcoat with red cross patterns decorating the sleeves, a SeeD cadet uniform underneath, and the Hyperion kept in his arm smirked at him, and got out off the class. Vincent glanced back, but the gunblade weilder had already left.

He turned back, to see Squall discussing softly with Quistis, and three other cadets observing the conversation. Vincent recognised those as Trepies, Quistis' fan club. Shaking his head at their stalking behavior, he moved closer to the black leather clad teen, whose facial scar mirrored Seifer's. His coat had white fur on the shoulders, and it reminded Vincent of a lion's mane. Brown bangs fell over the man's azure eyes, and his hand layed on top of his trusted weapon, a gunblade..

The gunblade was an impressive weapon to say the least. Baptised as the Revolver by it's owner, it was sheathed in it's scabbard tied in Squall's left side of his waist. The weapon was a combination of a sword and a handgun, which allowed it to charge effective concussive blasts by it's blade, dealing massive ammounts of damage.

"Have you two gone to the Fire Cavern yet?" asked Quistis. Squall shook his head in denial, and Vincent replied with a simple "no". The blonde woman leaned to the front, looking at the two men to the eyes. "Any excuses?"

"No, not really" They replied.

Quistis clucked her tongue. "Then let's get going," She replied. "I'll be waiting for you down at the front gate, so come down when you're ready." With that, Quistis walked out of the room, waving to the trio of Trepies as she passed through the doorway. Squall moved to follow, and as he reached the door, he could hear a few mutterings from behind him.

"I . . . I'm so jealous! Maybe I should take that subject too . . ." one person said, sounding appropriately envious.

"Alone with Instructor Trepe . . ." another envious person muttered, unsurprisingly male.

"If anything happens to Instructor Trepe, the Trepies will get you back!" called the last of the trio. Squall glanced over his shoulder at the girl who threatened him, and shrugged at her remark before stepping through the door.

Vincent laughed, at the trio, which glared at him before taking their leave as well, leaving him alone, and moved to his desk. If he knew what was going on, his GFs, or Guardian Forces would be waiting for him to get them.

He sat down on the desk he recognised as his own, and pressed the touch screen, bringing the computer attached to it back to life.

Setting his name and password, he logged into the and chose the GF option amongst others, such as news, tutorial, and such.

The screen faded to the only the background, and, after a second, it brought up the following message.

Login: Vincent Marko confirmed.

GF data for Vincent Marko . . .

Searching . . .

GF registered under Vincent Marko are:

GF Valefor

GF Fernir

Vincent blinked. _What the hell?_

Normally, he - Squall - would find two GF, named Quatzecotl, an elemental of lightning, and Shiva, the elemental of ice. That was not normal. Had the PS2 changed things? It certainly seemed like it.

While he stared on the "Receive: Yes/No" Option, a cell phone rang. He recognised it as a cell phone, for it sounded exactly like one, and because the brief sound played twice, before he located it by hearing. Looking under his desk, he found a small drawer, which he pulled open, to find inside the noise maker. He flicked the cell phone open, and answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Good morning, Vincent! How's life?" Sounded the PS2's cheery voice.

"Not bad, I suppose. What's the deal with the importing stuff from other games?"

"Originality is the key, buddy!" The PS2 giggled. "Cut it out, PS2." He growled. It was not that bad, really, but the happy-go-lucky-ness the PS2 carried annoyed him.

"Oh, pu-lease," it sounded, "It's not like you dislike it, right?" She asked, feinting sadness. She was hitting bullseye. Indeed, Vincent liked the importing idea.

"Yeah, I guess."

"Ok, I'm downloading the Junction basics to your brain now, give me a sec." She responded immediately, and Vincent felt his eyes fall as he lost conciousness. Before his body's weight pulled him to the ground, however, Vincent regained his mind and a grip of himself. "Ok," he shouted, shocked, before calming down. "What now?"

"It'll come to you naturally." She said, and the male was sure she was smiling. "Oh!" She yelled. "I forgot! Don't call me PS2, I have feelings, you know?"

Vincent allowed himself a grin. "What should I call you then?"

"How about.. Ririn!"

Vincent exhaled suddenly. "Ok, Ririn it is, Ririn." The 'girl' on the other side of the line chuckled, and spoke. "Ok, I'm off. Talk to you later! Keep the cellphone." With that, as suddenly as she spoke, the line was cut off.

The teen pocketed the cellphone, and turned his attention back to the screen. His mind filing with knowledge over those two creatures and ways to junction them, he pressed the "yes" button as an answer to the "receive?" question.

_Small it was, but not to shabby, eh? Sorry for not updating sooner, job took it's toll on me. Ok, people. I gave you a good time, now pay me! Not by actual money, dummies, review!_

_Until next time._


	3. Preparation

If there was one thing Vincent did _not_ expect that day, that would be himself getting absorbed into a videogame, where he would be given a background and a weapon, meet Quistis, Squall and Seifer in person, and attend SeeD classes..

Ok, he would admit these were more than one things, but who cared? The important thing at the time was that Vincent expected the game to keep it's linear storyline, and that all would be peachy. So, when he saw the screen show Fernir's and Valefor's names, GFs, or rather, an Eidolon from Final Fantasy 9 and an Aeon from Final Fantasy 10 respectively make their appearance, he was at a loss.

He definetely did _not_ expect for the life of his for these GFs to appear as Materia stones, or at least what Vincent suspected to be Materia stones.

Materia were the primary combat boosting source of Final Fantasy 7. They gave you access to spells, special combat abilities, upgraded your statistics, even allowed you to summon creatures – and that's what Vincent suspected the stones that made their appearance in a drawer under his desk to be for. The one stone was a light emerald color, while the other one was possessed a livid lavender.

Vincent reached his hands at the stones, one for each one, and felt the most amazing thing. The stones practically.. _reaching_ at him, similar to a baby in it's craddle trying to climb it's way out. They were pure energy, he knew it, and an energy the imported teen was going to use at the best of his capabilities.

The green stone was feeling rough to the touch, and emitted a 'wild' emotion, as if it could tear Vincent apart if he was not careful, while the purple one was smooth, a perfect sphere of tranquil thoughts and serenity. Vincent sighed, reaching for the two stones with his mind, talking to them, yearning, as they longed for his appearance.

The two stones dissolved into colorful threads of pure energy, colors that would even make a rainbow full of envy. Vincent sighed, the knowledge given to him making him understand that he would feel weird after the junctioning process, and started chuckling. A chuckle that evolved in a fully fledged laughter, with Vincent being alone in the classroom. The junctioning _tickled._

He tried to quiet down, in case Quistis, or, worse, the Trepies or the Disciplinary Comitee or whoever was outside the classroom, and muffled his laughter. He could feel the alien presences snooping around his brain, aiming for a nice place to settle in his memories, or the left side of his brain, or wherever, and acknowledge him as a worthy owner. He did not know why he could do that, or if he should, but decided to leave it at that. For some reason, which was unknown to him, Guardian Forces had something to do with his brain and mind.. But he could not remember what. It was something that, as Squall quoted lately in the game, 'was worth the price'. Or something like that. Vincent's mind was hazy for a moment there, before everything cleared up once again, his sight, balance and awareness returning, and he felt his muscles bulging slightly, an effect of his GFs junctioning magic spells through his statistics.

He knew they could probably do that, but he was not expecting it the effects to be so drastic. Vincent felt as if he could take on the whole world, and, as a side bonus, not even possess the need to smoke a cigarette.

He smirked, once again admiting to himself that he was going to like it here, and got up in order to leave the classroom.

Moving throught the Garden corridors, meeting almost noone, other than the occasional SeeD cadet here and there, who didn't even spare him a second glance, Vincent finally reached the bridge leading to the elevators. There, on the balcony railing, was sitting a young man, who wore beige pants and a green sweater, the color reminding him of Fernir's GF stone, who glanced at him. Somehow, Vincent knew that that man was waiting for him and him alone. Indeed, the more Vincent approached, the more tensed the man looked, until, finally, he leaped off the railing, and stood in front of his path. "Hey." He greeted, and raised a hand in a friendly gesture.

Vincent nodded his greetings in response. "Uh.." The man spoke again, before making up his mind. "Listen, my brother gave me those Triple Triad cards, but they are not my thing. Would you.. You know? Happen to want these?" As a matter of fact, the cadet (for he _was_ a Garden student) reached into his pocket and pulled out a bunch of illustrated square shaped cards, which he offered to Vincent.

"Sure, I could use these." Came the reply, as he reached for them, pocketing them in his pants' pocket.

The man nodded in approvement, and waved as he ran off. "Take care of them!" He yelled, and disappeared behind the corner. Vincent smiled at his new possession, knowing that if he played his cards right in the literal fashion, in the long term that would prove a really good move of his. He shrugged, though, realising that he still had to take the Fire Cavern test, and that the 'long term' would depend on him passing.

So, he punched the elevator button, causing the steel doors to spread wide, entered the booth, and moved on the ground floor, where he recognised – or at least, he thought he recognised - a rather obnoxious voice cheering. "Woo-Hoo! Thanks! That directory thing will prove really useful!" Tilting his head to the side, Vincent saw Squall chatting with a rather short girl with hazelnut hair, beautiful emerald eyes in a SeeD cadet uniform – chatting as a figure of speech, since the girl did the talking and Squall did the nodding and muttering 'whatever'.

He walked the stairs off the elevator stand, and moved past them, towards the cafeteria. Vincent remembered that the girl's name was Selphie, that she was a part of the main game gang, and a rather good spell caster.. A rather trivial information, that would surely come in handy in it's practical sense.

Walking down the corridor, Vincent entered the rather loud room, where SeeD cadets and SeeD alike enjoyed their lunch. Moving in line, the teen noticed Seifer standing next to a vending machine along with his 'disciplinary committee', otherwise known as Fujin, a platinum haired girl dressed in a blue suit, much similar to a sailor's, in Vincent's opinion, and Raijin, a massive giant with dark, tanned skin, dark hair, and with muscles on top of muscles. He wore an open vest that showed off his massive chest, and a thick necklace of brown orbs around his neck.

"SEIFER, DRINK?" asked the girl, moving a hand to ensure her eyepatch in it's place as Vincent stood in the line and glanced around. Fujin had a unique way of speaking, he noticed. She was not loud, per say, but not inaudible as well. Her voice was thick and metallic, crystal clear even with the students making noise as they went about in their business. Raijin spoke of something, perhaps idiotic, because soon after he closed his mouth, Fujin kicked him in the shin, hard enough for people to turn at the noise produced.

Many of them winced, and others smiled their sympathy for the huge man. Vincent could not afford to care for the duo, or Seifer in anyway. Not right then, at least, not when he had to feed himself.

"Can I help you, hun?" Spoke the woman, who leaned forward, trying to make him comfortable with his order. Needless to say, the woman, who was in her early sixties, with _way_ too curly hair and a huge mole in her left nostril just made Vincent want to run for his life. Instead of doing just that, however, he tried not to stare at her nose, and ordered a hot dog, a salad and a beverage, which wrote "Pop Fizzure" on it with bright blue colors.

"You're lucky, hun." The woman said. "It's the last hot dog." She said smiling, as she placed the object in question on the tray, along with a green salad.

Vincent was rather confident with his order mainly for one thing – the lunch was on the house, with him being a SeeD cadet. The same did not go for the actual SeeD, however, making him hope that he would not have to pay too much every time he ordered. Not bothering with the thought, he picked up his tray of food, thanked the kind old woman, and sat on the nearest table he could find. He placed the tray on the table, his claymore, the Harbringer, on the chair next to him, and sat down.

The raven haired teen noticed that noone seemed to care about the sword, as if it was something normal for a five foot long weapon to be there, right next to him. Considering actual SeeD were there, he supposed it was not too much of a hassle, but weren't SeeD para-military? Weren't they supposed to be prepared for anything, along with an armed fellow of theirs gone berserk, or mad, or whatever? Vincent supposed that it was their actual training and life hardships that made them ignore some facts. His stomach growled again, and he decided that enough musing was done for a while. It was time to dig in and enjoy himself.

Vincent was halfway of devouring through his salad, and was just unwrapping the hot dog, when a small, muscle-bound cadet with brilliantly blonde hair and a tribal tatoo on the left side of his face dashed inside the cafeteria and stood in front of the cafeteria lady, panting and heaving. "A-any.. Hot dogs.. Left?"

The cafeteria lady shook her head. "Sorry, hun. We're all sold out."

The man, whom Vincent mused that must have been Zell Dincht, another gang member he would officially greet later that same day, hunged his shoulders down. "Damn. Already? Ok then, I'll try again tomorrow.." He whined, and turned to leave.

He walked past Vincent's table dejectedly, and, the second he walked out of the room, Seifer, who was still standing by the vending machine, put on a sinister grin. "He's speeding." He commented, loud enough for everyone but Zell to listen. "Let's go arrest that student for violation of academy regulations, shall we?"

"AFFIRMATIVE." Came Fujin's response, while Raijin punched his fist in his other hand's palm. "Hell yeah, ya know!"

The trio ran off Zell, who was still on his own world. A lot of the students in the room laughed, forgetting that they had been in the same predicament as Zell's, that is, being bullied by Seifer and his passe, more than once.

Vincent wondered if he and Squall were the only ones who would not back away from Seifer. After all, Vincent had faced worst opponents so far. Taking his first bite onto the really tasty hot dog, Vincent realised that Seifer was to be a villain later in the game. What was he to do? After all, beating your high school bully is not the same as beating a lost man wielding a gunblade and lots of fire spells.

Vincent shrugged, already full with the sausage delight and the salad. He wiped the sauce of his mouth with a napkin, and, grabbing the beverage and his sword from the chair, and left the cafeteria, this time to meet Quistis at the Garden entrance.

Indeed, there she was, clad in a high-collared orange zip-up vest, a similarly colored skirt, leather gloves, and long black boots. A belt ran from her upper left hip down to her lower right, and hooked to it were her item pouches and a coiled whip made of a long chain, with a rather nasty looking blade on it's tip. "A'hoy," he greeted, and tossed the now devoid of liquid can in a nearby trash bin.

"Sure took you long enough, Vincent." Quistis commented, to which Vincent smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, didn't do it on purpose. As you may know, _quod me nutrit me destruit._" Vincent was glad that his latin was not as rusty as he wanted them to be. He had taken it as a class two years ago, and some things, like that line remained in his brain. Truth was, he only remembered it because that line was tatooed on a beautiful actress' abdomen along with an 'X' back in his world, but he guessed that piece of information was irrelevant at the moment.

Qustis smiled sweetly before gesturing theatrically with her hands. "That's cetra," She commented. "Didn't know you were into those. Hm.." She brought a hand to her chin, the actor's grace never leaving her. "Whatever feeds me destroys me.." She translated. "What in Hyne's name were you eating, Vincent?"

It was Vincent's turn to smile sweetly. "A hot dog." He responded honestly to which Quistis nodded.

"With all those calories, those things indeed destroy you. They are a delicacy though, aren't they?"

They looked at each other's eyes for a second, before laughing as hard as possible under the morning light.

Sooner or later, their laughter subsided, and Vincent was in his right mind to question Squall's whereabouts.

"He said he was low on spells. He is apparently at the training centre, drawing." She replied, as she sat on the road barrier.

"Drawing? Squall? I'm sorry, Instructor. Squall just doesn't strike me as the artistic nature."

For a moment, Quistis looked as if she was about to stick her tongue out, but she just opted to nod at Squall, who had just made his appearance.

"Well, since we are all here, how about we take off?"

Vincent nodded along with Squall.

Tonight, they would fight a fire demon called Ifrit.

* * *

_How was that? Up to your taste, I hope. Anyway, not much to comment, really, other than techincal bits. Squall is level 8, Quistis is level 10 (She is an Instructor for a reason, remember? I decided that's going to be it. Haha.), and Vincent? Well, our protagonist is halfway to 8. He is more power than experience, and, as you probably know, experience can sometimes mean more than a big sword. Anyhow, I'll update sooner or later (Pretty vague, don't you agree?), and then you will be able to rejoice again. _

_If you're reading this, it's time for you to hit the 'Submit Review' button, chums._


	4. Ifrit

The two cadets walked besides the blonde graceful SeeD and towards the Fire Cavern, a place where a beast named Ifrit was located. Normally, it would be wise to let a sleeping demon in it's hybernation, but SeeD weren't famous for smart things – they did recruit Seifer, after all. So, there they were, walking, no plan edged in their mind, when Vincent spoke up. "Uh, Instructor?" He asked, and when the woman turned he continued. "Is there a time limit for this adventure of ours?"

Quistis shook her head negatively. "Only the rational one – you should have finished at least an hour before the actual exam." Vincent nodded. What the female SeeD said made sense.

"So, if that's the case, could we make a stop at the beach? The Fasticolans and the Water spells they provide should prove to be welcome aid." He said, remembering a nice old trick from the actual game. He would kick Fasticolan ass for ages, until he got a lot of magic stones – he was unsure of what they looked like now, so he would just go over and call them magic stones for all it was worth – and then he would transmute them into Water Magic.. His train of thoughts died down when he thought that this was "real". There shouldn't be any exploits, such as walking around and having monsters attack you. Hell, not even the tiniest Bite Bug had arrived yet, and they were walking for a good fifteen minutes.

Quistis nodded. "Unofficial rule number 1; Always be prepared. I can go by that course of action. What do you think, Squall?"

"…" As expected, Squall opted not to reply, even though he practically radiated annoyance at the man for sidetracking them and hindering his test. "Whatever." He finally answered, mentally admitting that a small detour and refilling his magic spells with anti-fire could be helpful.

So, the company sidetracked towards the beach, a beautiful sandy one, where the beautiful, cresting waves slowly but steadily ascended on the above mentioned sand. It was not that bad, if you thought about it. It practically made Vincent want to jump in and have a swim right there, but he knew he couldn't. If things such as T-Rexaurs and huge Guardian Forces existed, what prevented Ririn from conjuring, say, an amphibious, carnivorous Brontosaurus?

Yes, a long swim would have to wait. Slowly, he undid his shirt's buttons, revealing the black t-shirt he wore underneath. Not only was it hot in the beach, the shirt's bugginess would most probably hinder his moves if it got all wet with his sweating. He slowly reached for his Harbinger next, drawing it out of it's sheath, feeling it's rather satisfactory weight in his hand, before getting a better grasp of it, and readying himself. Quistis looked at him for a second, nodded, and reached for her Chain Whip, and Squall was soon to follow their example, drawing his own Revolver, and pulled it's hammer back. _Ironic_, thought Vincent. _If Colt had an epiphany and created such a thing back home, it would be useless, considering the actual weaponry going around. However, if you combine the gunblade with magic, it becomes a very lethal thing to play with. _

The trio walked throughout the beach, always heading to the east. Whether they encountered monsters or not, Quistis had said as soon as they started moving, they still had a job to do. It made sense to Vincent, and he had let her know, while Squall remained the unreadable statue of nothingness and void he usually was. So, after five minutes of the males careful walking as in to not get sand in their shoes, and envying Quistis for her high heel boots – in Vincent's case, adoring her -, and a terrible sound, similar to car tires tearing through bitumen echoed through the bitch, and instantly the SeeD, along with the two cadets, knew that they were under attack.

A pair of large, red and yellow fins protruded from the sands, less than fifty feet away, but rapidly growing larger as the Fasticolans approached. The two cadets readied their weapons for a good attack of opportunity against the two monsters, should they choose to surface, while Quistis prepared a Thundara spell and kept it in check in the tip of her fingers, ready to have it hurled against one of the two.

Fasticolans were also called "Sandsharks" because that was what they were, in a sense; A fish like creature, with a gaping maw similar to a shark's filled with dozens of pointy, sharp teeth, and the ability to swim through sand. The monsters' tactic was this. Swim in, swim out, weaken the prey, and then do whatever it takes to finish it off.

Considering how the creatures had an affinity for water, and how water was a good conductor for electricity, and how Quistis had readied a thunder family spell, Vincent could let him self feel sorry for the Fasticolan which would draw closer to them first.

Indeed, the two fins crossing the sand drew closer, now within twenty feet. Quistis unleased her spell with a downward hand gesture, and her hand shone blue as thousands and thousands of watt surged through her and on the creature to the right, burning at it and making it drop dead, after swimming through a final good foot through the sand. The one to the left went for Squall, which it probably thought was the least of it's worries, judging by the weapon's size, perhaps? No matter to Squall, who was sturdy as a mountain as the beast moved closer and closer. When it was five feet away, Squall took one good step to the front and spinned on his heel, similar to a whirlwind starting to form, and as the beast leapt through the sand to bite at him, the broody cadet finished his spin and struck at it with his weapon of choice, pushing the trigger for a good effect on the creature's hide.

There was a bang, similar to a gunshot, and Squall hopped back to his original position, leaving behind him a bloody mess, the sorry remains of the Fasticolan. The creature's guts splotched on the sand, painting it green. "Cute," commented Vincent, breaking the somewhat uncomfortable silence that occurred. "Now what?"

Quistis turned on her heel, creating a triangle fomation, getting almost back to back with Vincent. "Now we wait for the rest of them. They always attack in packs."

"I see," was all Vincent managed to reply with, as three more fins exploded through the sand and sliced through it, towards him. From the other side, two for each one of them, both for Quistis and Squall appeared, rising the encounter's difficulty higher and higher, making Vincent, who was still unpracticed, rather nervous. Still, he decided he would live through Ultimecia if he so had to, and no Fasticolans would stop him from doing so. He pulled his body back, and waited for the monsters to approach.

On the other side, Quistis was striking with her Chain Whip in a rather original fashion; She horizontally swung the rante in a way to strike at both Fasticolans, taking good chunks out of their skins with the force behind her enhanced strength, courtesy of her junctions. The Fasticolans screeched, and with as much as a ridiculous _pop_, they were out of the sand, growling. They were like goldfish, really, only more ludicrus. Fasticolans were only slightly longer than the huge fins on top of their bodies, the distance from head to tail being only three feet. Two slender but long red fins poked out to either side of their bodies, and another large fin, though not as large or as long as the top fin, was located on its underbelly. Like its fins, the Fasticolan's body was red and yellow. The creatures growled, similar to a dog's threatening, and flew towards the blonde SeeD, who only swung her rante at them again, keeping their charge at bay.

Squall's enemies closed in, but this time Squall intended to make this quick. They had lost precious time on those things, while they should be tearing at Ifrit at the moment. The cadet waited for his closer target to attempt another passing bite. The red fin came in again, and again, it went straight for Squall. And without missing a beat, the passive teen slashed his gunblade down through the sands at the Fasticolan, practically impaling the beast on the weapon's blade. The second one still moved closer, and Squall could see the maw rising through the sand to bite at him.

Right. Not in his shift, it wouldn't. Squall pushed the trigger yet again, blasting the creature underneath the sand with the energy surge passing through the weapon, and he sliced through the ground with ease, using the momentary extra cutting edge the weapon now possessed. With significant ease, he struck at the monster like a professional baseball player would strike at the incoming ball, and the monster was cleaved in half before it could even ascend from the ground, cleary dead. The two pieces sprayed green matter around the place they landed on, but Squall was already gone, charging at the wounded Fasticolans Quistis was fending off.

Vincent was not as lucky. The three of his opponents did not move together, tightly locked in a battle formation, but instead opted to split, making it harder for him. He heard Squall grunt from behind him, but he did not care. He couldn't afford to care, not at the time. The monster on the left was now in flanking position with the one on the right, and Vincent knew he was going to have it tough. Tough as hell. He waited, and waited, and waited, and he instantly knew that was enough. He charged forth, allowing the monsters on the opposite ends to do whatever, and sliced at the one in front of him, which was in the process of surfacing. The Harbinger flashed red as the monster was struck down, not unlike the one Squall killed right a second ago, with a slight difference; Where Squall struck, he cut cleanly through, like a laser of sorts. Vincent's weapon reaped through the creature, tearing it apart. It was dead for sure, even though the twiching it made did not help in order to reduce his tention. Vincent spinned immediately, knowing that the two monsters would not have any remorse on biting him on the back, and he found himself readying a cunning – well, not so cunning, he had to admit, but he still got through it fast enough – plan.

Going through his spells, he found a couple of Firas. They would have to do. Holding the Harbinger with one hand, he blasted the creature to the left with it, sending it back momentarily, as long as he needed in order to resume his fighting position and walk against the now accellerating attacking creature. He struck at it, and he realised with a smile that he could cleave through it as well, rather easily at that. The other monster regained it's senses from the blast and prepared to float at him and bite him, when Quistis' Chain Whip struck it hard, sending it on the floor, where it twiched for a second before starting to ascend once more. This time, it was Squall who struck it down.

"Well, that was interesting. Watching you two in action, I mean." Commented Quistis, earning something similar to a glare from Squall and a smile from Vincent. The SeeD instructor smiled back, and then hasted to annoy Squall, as they both commented in unison "Whatever." Quistis giggled, a melodical sound, while Squall scoffed and reached for a combat knife in his waist, aiming to remove the Fasticolan's fins before more of them appeared. He kneeled and started carving, much like a primitive hunter, while Quistis and Vincent looked at him, not so engrossed by the whole thing anymore. The imported cadet swung his sword a couple of times, to get the much unwanted blood of it, and resheathed it, while Quistis simply allowed her Chain Whip to rest on her belt clip.

Squall was done with the fin collecting, so the broody teen held up the fins in his hand, focused on them, and mentally reached out and touched his elemental companions' powers. The dead fins in his hand glowed, then seemed to form a melting light that seeped down into his hand, through the intervening fabric of his glove. He felt the power of Water magic in his mind and body, and then focused, shifting the magical energies around. By the time he was done, he had produced more than enough needed for him, easily reaching the maximum quantity he was capable of holding. He offered the hand in which he held the fins towards the two of them. When Quistis shook her head and Vincent did nothing, he decided that he _had_ to speak. "Reach out for them, will you?" He prompted, and Vincent walked towards him, and knew that, in order to do what Squall was asking him to do, he would need to reach out for the GFs inhabiting his brain and mentally order them to Draw the magic from Squall.

He did so, or, at least, tried to do so, and he then knew that he was doing well. The remaining fins that Squall held dissolved into liquid energy, and flew towards him fast in the form of shiny blue spheres of water that possessed a lavender core. The spheres collected in his outstretched arm, and they were absorbed there, illuminating his veins and skin around them in the same variety of blue like theirs. Vincent sighed and opened his eyes. Reaching out and Drawing from Squall was.. Depressing. He suddenly had a flashback of Quistis teaching that, in order to use the Draw ability all GFs possessed, you had to reach out for your target and then 'connect' with him, establishing some sort of momentary fusion. Then, using that, you could easily, well, Draw upon him, for luck of words, and then sever that connection before the target could do the same on you. The actual Drawing's success depended on sheer willpower. For example, Drawing from a simple minded target, like a T-Rexaur ("Or Squall", as Seifer had kindly commented), was easier than Drawing from a more complex individual ("No, Seifer", has said Quistis right after that, "You count as a simpleton, thank you very much.").

Vincent felt his magical reserves fill with Water magic, and he felt his GFs shift that magic in his actual muscle potential, making his body bulge momentarily from the power surge, and the previously junctioned Fire spells in his toughness. He felt like a bodybuilder, and the fatigue trying to crawl in his muscles disappeared completely. "Ready?" He heard Quistis ask, and he nodded in response. "Ok then," she said, "Let's get going. Our purpose on the beach is done." So, the instructor and the cadets headed northeast again, directly for the Fire Cavern. Within half an hour they could actually see the Fire Cavern, its tall cliffs looming up above them. At the base of the cliffs, in front of a yawning black cave entrance, stood a pair of Faculty members.

"So we're here." Quistis said. "You still want to do this, _cadets_?" While she was meant to support them, Quistis couldn't help herself and taunt them, as well as enjoy their responses. Squall crossed his hands in front of his chest and commented his favourite line of all time, his infamous "Whatever," while Vincent narrowed his eyes and walked forward, never missing a beat, and definetely _not_ appreciating the joke.

This was it. The Fire Cavern test. One of, if not the, most important tests a SeeD cadet would take, amongst his final one. Reaching, fighting, and defeating a GF in combat. What could sound more prestigious than that, with the exception of a person's actual SeeD title?

Ifrit was a creature of fire, forever scarred with the visage of a beast like demon, bound on his cave. As the word 'bound' went, it meant that Ifrit was not a random individual picked up for a test. The fire elemental was there in order for cadets to prove their worth, as decided by the Garden Master NORG himself. If they could defeat him, then they would earn it. Usually, the test was taken by a single cadet and a supporting SeeD, who would proceed to reach Ifrit's lair, and defeat him in his own game, thus earning the right to junction his otherwise untamable power. However, this time it seemed that fate, or rather, Ririn, the cheery PS2 had switched things around, and that Vincent would have to tag along with Squall. No problem, right? Right.

Next to Vincent, Squall gave a military salute to the Faculty. As much as the teen hated kissing butt, the two men could deny him the access to the test if they so chose to, so Squall opted for the gentle approach. "Student no. 41269, Squall Leonhart, ready to take the Fire Cavern test," Squall spoke as he stood at attention in front of the robe clad individuals. One of them seemed to nod, and then both of the Faculty turned to look at Vincent, who was also quick to salute and speak of his purpose. When he spoke, his voice was confident and easy going, while in reality he was nervous as hell, considering how – normally – he was not aware of even his Student number.

"Student no. 39145, Vincent Marko, ready to take the Fire Cavern test," he said, and the two of the Faculty nodded.

"Your objective: To obtain a low-level Guardian Force," the faculty to the left said. "A SeeD member must support."

"I'm their support," Quistis replied, taking a quick step to the front, standing at attention as well and snapping off a salute. "Instructor no. 14, Quistis Trepe." The Faculty nodded and turned back to the cadets.

"Select a time limit," the one to the right said, or rather, spat at them. "Challenging, yet reasonable." He added, making the two cadets glance at each other while breaking their salutes and attention.

"…Well?" Said Squall, practically glaring at Vincent.

Vincent mulled over the objective. Battling Ifrit would be rather time consuming, and they would also need a reasonable ammount of minutes were they to actually reach the GF. Judging on how it was two of them, and on how Quistis seemed indiferent – well, not really, but it was not her place to give them hints -, the imported cadet suggested a time limit. "What about twenty minutes?"

It was Squall's turn to mull, but the teen just nodded. "Twenty minutes it is," he said to the Faculty, to which they once again nodded. "Very well. The time will start passing the second you step in. Make sure you are ready." With that, the robe clad individuals stepped aside, allowing the trio entrance. "Good luck." They offered while Quistis, Vincent and Squall walked in, before the duo of Faculty walked back in position in front of the entrance, blocking their escape, was an escape to happen.

And then it happened. The heat of the lava hit Vincent like a hammer, for this cavern was the reception hall of hell itself. Half-solid lava ebbed and bubbled, bidding for his attention, not letting him forget where he was. And there, a path of gravel stretched before them, a levee to serve as their guide to the hottest fire of all, Ifrit, the Fire Demon himself. The imported cadet gasped for oxygen, the heat being unbearable and horrid, and he instantly saw Squall reach for his jacket and doff it, tying it around his waist by it's sleeves. Breathing heavily, the two males reached for their weapons, and mentally prepared themselves. The heat was making Vincent's head probe, he felt as if the lava itself was reaching for him. It was unbearable. Turning to Quistis, he saw her nod. "Time is ticking," She said, "But I feel that I have to say this. I am only here to make certain you stay alive. I'll leave anything else in here up to you, be it Ifrit or a normal monster." The woman was sweating, clad in her long sleeved vest, and Vincent thought of suggesting her to remove it, but let it slip.

It was way to Seifer-ish, and a scowling, mad at him, Quistis was the last thing he needed. Instead, he nodded, passing along that he got the message, patted Squall on the back, and the two of them were off, striding swiftly through the long, winding stone walkway that descended deep into the center of the Cavern. Around the stone flowed molten magma, producing a heat unbearable to any mortal. "Ifrit has better be worth this." Said Vincent, earning a chuckle from Quistis.

"You know, the boys often choke on this test when I come with them," remarked the blonde woman. "I guess my charm makes them nervous." Squall glared at her, his entire being screaming _Whatever!_ while Vincent smiled, this time not resisting the temptation of teasing her.

"Yes, I feel for them, Instuctor. My heart aches just thinking about you. Marry me. We will have a ceremony, and make sure to invite all the Trepies.." He trailed off, his tone nonchallant and humoring, and Quistis managed to laugh, flush, and look horrified, all in the same time. Vincent just hoped that she was horrified of inviting the Trepies to a wedding, and not the actual idea of marrying him, because, well, that would be the exact definition of _"backfired"._

"Can we move along?" Suggested Squall, and the now reducing laughter to giggling Quistis motioned for them to move along. The cadets and instructor descended deeper into the heart of the cavern, keeping their eyes on the trail ahead for any threats. Up ahead, a creature floated around a stalagmite mound on edge of the stone walkway. It was large, about human-sized, and spherical. It featured short arms and flames on top of its round body, and diabolic, grinning face on the front.

"Bomb," Squall and Quistis remarked in unison as soon as they became aware of it, knowing that, if left alone, it could be far more dangerous than even Ifrit. Not hesitating, Squall and Vincent drew upon their magical energies and casted spells at the monster. Where Vincent doused the fiery creature with many galons of water, however, Squall crushed it with a large chunk of ice, which burried the creature on the hot soil beneath it, not rising up. The Bomb was dead before it could threaten them, so the trio advanced deeper into the Cavern. The stone path began to wind and branch out from here, and the light only got duller. All of them could clearly see that the the Cavern's center was up ahead, inside a pool of magma.

Ifrit's home.

They walked cautiously, with Quistis mentioning that they still had fifteen minutes, when from the lava "ponds" around them errupted another of the devil spheres called Bombs. They were baptised that way from their unique ability; they would explode at will if they received enough damage without dropping dead. A rather lethal tecnique, which the cadets had to make certain to avoid.

Squall was drawing his sword, deciding to keep his spells for the more dangerous opponent far ahead. These ones were hardly developed, so it seemed like they could avoid having them explode in their faces. Vincent opted to follow, but had to take a tumble to the left when the Bomb flashed with vibrant emerald light and sent a burst of flame in his path. Squall took his chances and did not change his course, leaping in front of it and striking heavy with his gunblade, the blast powerful enough to take the hellish creature down, with Squall hopping back to avoid any "accidents" upon "accidental" contact with it. Vincent stood up from his flip, and glanced upon the dead creature. "Oh." He said, and shrugged, before raising himself completely, gathering his wits, and moving forward. This was getting weirder by the moment, he mused. At one point he could fight as if he had been doing so for ages, and at one point he was unable to even react correctly. Or was he just thinking poorly of himself? He was rather certain he could not do, no, _would_ not do such things back at home, even if he was trained to do so. Yes, thinking poorly of himself he was, he surmised, and paced faster, wanting to reach the GF's actual lair that very same instant. He wanted out of that damnable cave, and in his cosy bed, with it's cool sheets. He breathed deeply, knowing that he should concentrate on this, especially when Ririn's words echoed through his head again and again.

_Everything you are about to experience is real. So, you should take it seriously._

"Ten minutes," Quistis informed them as they continued down the walkway a few moments later. Up ahead was the very center of this Hell, a stone platform similar to a fiend's grasp.

"I guess I was right," Quistis admitted as they drew closer to Ifrit's fiery home. "You two, along with Seifer, are out of anyone's league. You both have amazing strength and potential." Squall didn't reply to the compliment, focusing instead on the center of the Cavern. Vincent nodded. _If you say so, Instructor. _His laughing mood was dead. He felt his feet heavy, and dull, and he was beginning to feel a horrid migraine. Up ahead, the GF's lair reminded him of a fountain, only with lava. The whole place seemed eerie, and yet serene, as if there was a hidden peace in it. The lava barely made in noise. No monsters. No anything. Could it be because of the GF's presence? Probably.

"This is it," Quistis said from behind them. Squall glanced back at her, to see the SeeD instructor standing a safe distance away from the fiery hole. He looked at Vincent, and he nodded at him.

"This is it." Squall said, repeating Quistis' words.

Vincent nodded back. "Yeah. Let's do this." He said, barely believing it.

The two cadets readied their weapons of choice – ok, so the Harbinger was given to Vincent despite his will, but still -, and waited.

"That's the spirit," commented a grinning Quistis as she walked halfway back, away from the fiery platform. "Make me proud, you two." She said, hoping the best for the two best of her students.

The ground began shaking. Jets of yellow energy, fiery magic, shot out from the hole in the center of the platform. Squall grasped his gunblade tightly, and Vincent swung his reassuringly. It was time.

Chunks of rock and molten stone flew up from the hole, accompanied by more bursts of magic and a titanic roar. Then, something else rose out of the fiery gap, a massive and mighty creature, an entity of flame and wrath and destruction, a true demon, who tossed it's head back and roared again, shaking the very cave's foundations.

Squall and Vincent did not miss a beat as they rushed to flank the demon from his left and right side, Squall preparing a _Blizzard_ spell and tossing it on Ifrit, with much desired effects, such as the creature roaring in protest. "IMPUDENT HUMANS!" cursed Ifrit, while turning to fend off the caster, planning to extract revenge on him for that pain. Vincent would not allow that, however, as he slashed at the demon with all his might, and practically doing nothing on the beast's brown hide.

The Guardian Force was huge, twice Squall's height and, if he were flesh and bone, would have weighed at least ten times your average person. The demon stood on thick, dog-like, heavily muscled legs. Ifrit's chest was muscular and massive, at least six feet wide. His fingers and toes were tipped with black claws, and his hide was a dark brown, as if singed by the flames from which the demon had spawned from. His growling visage looked like that of a hell-spawned lion, and a pair of huge, slender black horns rose from the top of his head and curved back, extending out nearly ten feet. The Guardian Force had long red hair that ran down his back, and also a short red beard around his jawline. Ifrit's eyes glowed yellow, like molten gold, and had no irises or pupils. It's roar was booming and echoing, and that was tested fairly well when it cried in protest of Vincent's attack.

The demon elbowed Vincent, or at least tried to, since the teen barely managed to hop back, and avoid getting struck by muscles that could crush a car as easily as a man could crash a car. Squall took the oportunity to slash at Ifrit's momentary opening, making sure to pull the trigger, leaving a dark red gash on it's ribcage, before the creature turned to punch him with his other hand. Squall was hit in the chest, and hurled ten feet away, before touching the ground and skidding another good ten feet, making him reach dangerously close to the platform's edge and the waiting magma next to it. Squall cared not about the danger, and rushed at Ifrit again, while Vincent decided to call upon a Water spell to take the Demon's aggravation on him. While the water blob struck Ifrit, the demon only clenched his fist, as if preparing to toss something at him underhanded.

"TWO CAN PLAY THIS GAME, HUMAN." Commented the GF, before tossing a Fire spell of unimaginable strength on Vincent, making him bless his own junctioned GFs for shifting his magic to his defense, protecting him from the full blast's force. His shirt was ruined nonetheless, and Vincent was also hurled away from the force, but at least he was still breathing, despite the ache in his chest, and the singed skin underneath.

Squall used the opportunity to strike at Ifrit once more, this time at the demon's legs, never failing to pull the trigger and cause another disgustingly red mark in Ifrit's leg. The bastard would still not fall, however, and not only that, but it seemed that he was easily getting angrier and angrier with the two cadets. Ifrit turned and tossed a punch in Squall's direction, out of which Squall ducked, avoiding his head becoming flat against the creature's wrath and the stone behind him. He slashed at the arm while tumbling out of the way, and hoped he had enough bullets remaining for his next stunt.

Vincent, on the other hand, was debating on what to do, when he decided that, with Squall so close to Ifrit, spell casting was out of the question. He could easily hurt Squall that way, and he couldn't have that. So, he rushed into battle, making certain to avoid the burning pond in the middle of the platform. Swinging with all the fury he could master, Vincent leapt high on the air and thrusted his sword in the fire elemental's back, a stunt which Squall was quick to imitate, with one difference. The usually silent cadet started pulling the trigger again and again, sending clear chunks of flesh away with each surge of the gunblade. The beast, fighting against both the searing hot pain of the Harbinger imbebing into his shoulderblades, and the Revolver sending pieces of it's waist flying, doubled over, where both of cadets stepped on it, and pulled their weapons back for a coup de grace, with Vincent impaling Ifrit where he thought his heart would be with his claymore, while Squall once again struck in Ifrit's back.

The beast roared, and started to rise, before crumpling over in defeat. The two cadets pulled their weapons out of the beast, and walked off him and towards the SeeD Instructor, who could only wince in sympathy on the sight behind them.

Ifrit had risen again, and this time he was growling as his yellow eyes burned deep into the two cadet's souls. "HM. NOT BAD FOR A HUMAN." Exclaimed the beast, before readying two fireballs, one in each hand, and hurling them on the two flat footed teens, sending them on the ground, weapons scattering on the stone floor. Before they knew it, Ifrit had leapt on the air, and prepared to land on them, possibly flattening them both with his mighty weight.

No such luck. Both Squall and Vincent rolled out of the way before the beast could kill them, and each of them rose, Squall bombarding Ifrit with Blizzard spells as he did so, while Vincent reached for the Harbinger, and turning to cast a Water spell on the once again roaring GF. The beast opted to ignore Vincent, and charged at Squall, who rolled out of the way, only to receive a Fire spell right in the chest, sending him further back.

Vincent knew that, with Squall momentarily out of the picture, Ifrit would aim at him, so he prepared to dodge any attack the creature would send at him. The beast tossed one, two, three, four, Fire spells, never ceasing, with slow consecutive calculated attacks, which finally caught up with him, sending him on the floor, allowing Ifrit to rush at him, hoping to trample him over his feet.

The GF was getting closer and closer, and the moment it was going to strike, an icicle was shot from the ground, right in front of him, like a mother hen protecting her childern. The absolute heat of the Fire Cavern was gone in an instant, replaced by a horrid, frigid cold. Inside the icicle, a figure moved, before shattering the ice, and freeing itself from it. The figure was now easy to see, a blue skinned, beautiful and shapely woman. Her long blue hair reached her ankles, and she was dressed in what seemed to be parts of the ice out of which she was born. "THEY HAVE SHIVA!" Ifrit exclaimed, realizing the power of the ice Guardian Force.

The GF in question smirked, and waved a hand over her head, and bluish-white energy formed there, the magical power gathering and strengthening. Then, Shiva thrust forward at Ifrit. A shockwave of frozen air blasted into Ifrit, the absolute low temperatures devastating the fire Guardian Force and freezing the surrounding air as it was swept away, creating a line of frozen icicles around the path of Shiva's attack. Shiva, her duty done, faded away, and the ice she had created shattered and disappeared.

The massive beast, which was barely done regenerating the wounds Squall and Vincent had done to him, now featured red marks all over it's body. It was almost done, but not yet. Momentarily lost in a world of pain, the GF did not notice Vincent charging forward in front of him, and shooting a sharp sword in it's stomach. The beast roared, and that sound changed to a scream of rage and pain as Squall blasted it with a Blizzard spell for good measure.

"Die, you bastard!" Commented Vincent, and Quistis could only nod. The battle had taken more than enough, and it seemed to her that both cadets could use some help. However, despite the fact that the claymore weilder had reached the point of twisting his blade inside Ifrit's stomach, as if to cause more pain and damage, the beast remained standing.

In a green yellow chuckling lightning, Squall stood, and brought his gunblade to his shoulder, gathering all that energy inside his weapon. A Limit Break was the most powerful expression of one's feelings. It was pure rage and hatred and frustration and feelings, channeled into reality, and into one's personal effect.

Squall's was the Renzokuken, a series of slashes, thrusts, cleaves and strikes, which was usually followed up by a finisher, had Squall the energy required for it. With unbelievable speed, the cadet in question had climbed onto Ifrit's back and hacked again and again and _again_ at the same part of it's body, it's massive neck, out of which came blood and flesh in a repetitive fashion, making the GF scream in denial and pain. Squall slashed like there was no tommorow, after which he jumped off Ifrit and on the ground, steadying his step, while Ifrit tried to recollect his balance from the onslaught.

Squall's Revolver flashed with brilliant energy once more, and the young man locked his eyes on his target's vulnerable behind. With a sudden crouch, Squall unleashed all the energy he had acquired upon striking Ifrit, and dashed forward, his gunblade low, scratching – actually, opening a damn chasm – on the ground. With an insanely high jump, Ifrit was cleaved from his left kneecap to the base of his skull, before Squall landed to the other edge of the platfrom, where he collapsed. If he had not killed Ifrit _now_, he would never do it, tests and SeeD and exams be damned.

The beast roared one final time before Vincent blasted him with a Water spell for good measure, making Ifrit collapse on his already hurt knee. "FOR ME TO LOSE TO A HUMAN..." rumbled the ancient GF, before dissolving into ember flames, which disappeared after a good minute, leaving behind a GF stone and something that looked disgustingly familiar to a Triple Triad card.

Vincent's tired mind had enough wits left to comment. "Didn't know Ifrit was playing. Maybe I should call him over for a game or two.."

"You will do nothing, not until I say otherwise." Came a female voice, and Vincent registered Quistis kneeled next to him, reaching out for his injured, aching chest with her right hand, which glew with a green-ish light.

The teen managed a smile. "Sure thing, Instructor. Hey, Squall," He called to the gunblade specialist, "You take the GF, I take the card?" Squall gave Vincent a weird look, but then he shrugged and tossed the casual "Whatever," before junctioning the stone, and reaching a hand to deliver the recuperating cadet the Triple Triad.

"Thanks." Said Vincent, and then he groggily stood. "So, Instructor, how did we do?" He asked. Vincent was shaking all over from excitement. He was close to dying back there, and, whether Ifrit faked his assault or not, for a moment the cadet felt disgustingly close to the Grim Reaper. He figured that the only reason for him not pissing his pants already were his Junctions, which he knew could make him as sturdy as determined.

Not that he minded.

Quistis grinned. "You did very good. Not only did you get the objective done, but you also did so within the time limit." Both cadets looked at each other, and even the normally broody Squall couldn't suppress his smirk.

"Let's get going, then." Offered Vincent, to which Quistis nodded and Squall walked away.

_Hm. Definetely the longest chapter I've written in a long time. For your information, I changed the summoning process. No vanishing to thin air, it just seems stupid. Besides, I have the suspicion that, should FF8 ever get a remake, the characters wouldn't just disappear. Besides, your teammates being hurt by your own careless summon is just too sweet an idea to pass. Anyhow. Liked it? Yes? No? Let me know, will you? Oh, one more thing. I owe the Fire Cavern description to Omega Gilgamesh. _

_He wasn't asking for too much after all._


End file.
